


Reflections

by crazycatlady713



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012)
Genre: Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Japanese Mythology & Folklore, Young Turtles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-20
Updated: 2014-12-20
Packaged: 2018-03-02 11:00:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2809856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crazycatlady713/pseuds/crazycatlady713
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Its story time in the Hamato household...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reflections

"What story would you like to hear tonight, Miwa-chan?"

The toddler merely looked back at her father, tiny hands on her hips and a look of incredulity on her face. The question was one of mere protocol and they both knew it. The story she wanted to hear, the one she asked for every night for the past month and would presumably want for the next was one both father and daughter knew by rote; The tale of Amaterasu and the Divine Mirror. She climbed onto his lap, thumb lodged firmly in her mouth, and settled in for the beloved bedtime ritual.

"High in the sky in a palace that shines as bright and golden as the sun lives the goddess Amaterasu. It is her job to make the sun shine upon us everyday and without her, there would be no flowers, no warmth and no light! And that is exactly what happened once, long ago. You see, Amaterasu has a brother who is as dark and wicked as she is kind and good, and his name is Susano-wo..."

The child hissed at the mention of the impetuous male's name, as if she were personally aggrieved by his heinous actions. Yoshi smiled, tickled at how thoroughly invested she was in the tale. He continued.

"He was very naughty, and when his mommy and daddy tried to give him a time-out, he said, 'no! Not until I see my beautiful sister one more time!' So he went to her palace and, once there, was up to all kinds of mischief! He was very mean to his big sister, and it made her very, very sad. So she hid in a deep, dark cave and would not come out. The world went dark without her and nothing would grow, so the other gods and goddesses tried everything to get her to come out and make the world bright again. First, they brought lots of roosters to the front of the cave and told them to crow, hoping she would be convinced it was morning and come out. But she was not so easily fooled. What did she say when she heard the roosters, Miwa-chan?"

"No, no, no!" she cried, wagging a pudgy finger for emphasis.

"Ha ha, that's right! She knew the gods and goddesses were trying to trick her, and she refused to come out. So they tried something new. They threw a big party in front of the cave with lots of singing and dancing, and they said, 'come out, Ama-kun! Look how much fun your friends are having without you! Come join us!' But still, she said..."

"No, no, no!" Miwa chimed in, shaking her pig-tailed head vigorously.

"That's right, she did not want to come out. She was still too sad. Again, the gods and goddesses came up with a new plan. They had the greatest blacksmith in all of Heaven build the biggest and most beautiful mirror the world has ever seen. The frame was made of silver and gold and was covered in jewels of all kinds, and the surface was polished till it shone brighter than the moon. Once the mirror was finished, they hung it from a tree in front of the cave. When the light from this most amazing treasure entered the cave, Amaterasu became curious. She slowly crept out, and what did she see?"

At Yoshi's prompt, Miwa pantomimed preening before an invisible hand mirror.

"Mm-hm. She saw her own reflection, and saw how beautiful and bright she was. She knew then that the world needed her, and came out once and for all. The gods and goddesses closed up the cave and Amaterasu went back to her palace, where she continues to make the sun shine on the whole world to this very day."

She erupted into rapturous applause at the tale's conclusion, as though it were her first time hearing it.

"Thank you, thank you," he said, bowing.

Though it pleased him to see his daughter so happy, he could not fully understand the tale's appeal, and supposed it was simply a girlish fixation with beauty and finery. It was a tragically antediluvian viewpoint however, one that his wife chided him for when she heard it.

"Honestly Yoshi, give our daughter _some_ credit!" she said.

Perhaps Shen was right. Perhaps Miwa saw past all the mention of gold and jewels and gleaned something entirely different from the story. Something that he, with his sadly grown-up sensibilities, simply failed to perceive.

"Alright, my little dumpling," Shen said as she swept the child up. "Story time is officially over. Time for bed."

Miwa let out a high-pitched squeal as she reached for her father in vain.

"Now now, you can have story time again _tomorrow_ night," she reassured her daughter as she carried her to bed.

There would not be another story time however, not after that night, and the scene he revisited so often in his dreams did not count. He awoke on his pallet, the fur around his eyes moist with tears. Taking a deep breath and hoisting himself up, he spotted a figure standing in the entrance, illuminated from behind by the lantern's scant light. For the briefest of moments he thought it was _her_ , but knew that was impossible. He took another deep, cleansing breath to steady himself before he called the child over.

It was Michelangelo this time, dragging his prized plush tabby cat by the threadbare tail as he crept closer. It was becoming increasingly difficult to put him down as of late, a distinction normally reserved for the far more volatile Raphael. Splinter blamed the child's lively imagination, keeping him awake at all hours of the night. He knew the feeling.

"Do you need to use the bathroom, my son?" he asked the leaf-green toddler as he sidled onto Splinter's lap. Yawning, he shook his head no as he rubbed his eye with a tiny green fist.

Though it had already been two years since he took in the strange brood, it still amazed him how human-like their expressions and mannerisms were. So much like his own daughter's, in fact.

"Would you like your juice?" he asked, careful to avoid any mention of the dreaded pacifier, a crippling habit he had just broken the boy of. Again however, he shook his head no.

"What would you like, then?" He cast his sky-blue eyes towards the ceiling, as if pondering the question.

"Stowy," he finally answered.

"I...I haven't any stories to tell, Little One," Splinter responded, a slight hitch in his voice.

Positively crestfallen, Michelangelo's lower lip began to quaver. Splinter wondered briefly if digging through the trunk at the far end of the room for the pacifier hidden there wasn't such a bad idea after all. Before he could follow through with his plan however, the child placed his little hand on Splinter's muzzle. He looked into his son's stricken eyes then, more luminous and lovely than burnished gems, their effulgence seeming to dispel even the lair's all-consuming darkness. The look of unwavering love and trust he beheld in those eyes made his heart ache and, swallowing the lump in his throat, he spoke.

"I know one story you may like, actually."

The child's face lit up instantly and, smiling, he cuddled against his adoptive father's chest. He abandoned his beloved stuffed cat on the floor in favor of Splinter's tail, wrapping his tiny fingers around the appendage as he made himself comfortable. Splinter took a moment to caress his head, marveling as he did so the softness of his skin and the sweet, apple juice-like scent he exuded.

"High in the sky in a palace that shines as bright and golden as the sun lives the goddess Amaterasu..." he began.

Michelangelo stuck his thumb in his mouth, listening intently to the time-honored tale as his father gently rocked him to sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> If Splinter were my dad, things would be DIFFERENT around here! *slams door*


End file.
